House of the Countess Calleja

The House of Countess Calleja is located in Montiel, at a busy point in the town center, next to the intersection of Castilla-La Mancha Avenue and the Santa Cruz road. Its presence marks one of the visual entrances to the town and allows contemporary civil architecture to be incorporated into a tour of a town dominated by the medieval memory of La Estrella Castle.

Built in 1898 by the Gutiérrez de la Vega family, the house reflects the late 19th-century taste for embellishing urban facades without entirely abandoning the traditional La Mancha layout. Its significance lies not in its defensive or religious monumentality, but rather in demonstrating how certain wealthy families incorporated new decorative styles into the stately home, maintaining the central courtyard as the heart of its distribution.

The building has a square floor plan and two main stories arranged around an interior courtyard. The exterior is notable for its rusticated masonry base, which extends to the first floor, while the upper section is decorated with plasterwork featuring classical motifs, trompe-l'œil columns, rosettes, and ornamental moldings around the openings. As it is a private residence, visits must be made from the façade, always respecting its private nature.